how-to-fix-nofollow-internal-links-seo

Objective:  This blog can guide developers, businesses, and sites on why SEO suffers due to poor use of nofollow attributes in linking structure, as it prevents the flow of link credibility and crawling of the sites. It provides realistic measures on detecting, auditing and correcting such problems; particularly on platforms such as WordPress. You will also find out the correct uses of nofollow and how the SEO Discovery will help you in your internal linking strategy to achieve higher ranking and visibility.

One of the elements of SEO is internal linking, which leads the user and the search engine through the structure of your site. Unfortunately, numerous site administrators, web designers and online marketers are undermining the performance of their websites by improper use of the rel = “nofollow” attribute on internal links. Theorized to help in managing the crawling budget or prevent the passing of link equity to untrusted sources, when used on your own pages, nofollow internal links can severely damage overall SEO.

Search engines like Google have changed how they handle nofollow tags on links inside your own website. Now, instead of always ignoring these links, they might pay attention to them and use them in their search decisions. Still, if your site has a mix of dofollow and nofollow internal links, this sends mixed signals to crawlers, potentially causing ranking-worthy pages to be overlooked. 

Did You Know? Over 60% of websites have internal nofollow links pointing to high-priority content, negatively impacting search visibility.

The good news? All these SEO problems can be addressed With proper internal link audit, rectifying internal nofollow linkage, and implementing best practices across your CMS, whether that is WordPress or a custom stack, it is possible to open up enhanced crawlability, superior user journeys, and organic visibility. This blog is going to examine how to correct the nofollow internal links and optimize your internal linking strategy hence ensuring your internal linking game is spot-on.

  • Key Takeaways

  • Audit your site regularly to detect nofollow internal links that may be blocking link equity and hurting SEO.
  • Remove unnecessary nofollow attributes in outgoing internal links to ensure better crawlability and indexing by search engines.
  • Use consistent, clean internal link structures and avoid sending mixed signals where a URL receives both follow and nofollow internal links.
  • If you’re using WordPress, learn how to fix internal nofollow links WordPress by updating plugin settings and avoiding default nofollow configurations.
  • Get expert support from SEO Discovery to optimize your internal linking strategy, enhance your organic rankings, and drive more qualified traffic.

Table Of Contents

Understanding Nofollow Internal Links and Their SEO Impact

Nofollow internal links are the kind of hyperlinks in the same webpage but with the addition of the rel=”nofollow” attribute in the internal links. This indicates to search engines to:

  • Do not transfer the link equity (PageRank) to the linked page.
  • Do not use this link to pass any ranking signals.

While nofollow is useful for external sponsored/affiliate links, using it internally can disrupt SEO by:

  • Blocking crawlability
  • Reducing ranking potential
  • Creating inconsistent link signals

Why Nofollow Internal Links SEO Problems Can Damage Your Rankings

Nofollow internal links can significantly harm your SEO performance in several ways. When internal links include the rel=”nofollow” attribute, they block the flow of PageRank, meaning valuable link equity doesn’t transfer to the target page. This limits the ability of important pages to rank well in search results. Additionally, Google tends to deprioritize crawling pages that are tagged with internal nofollow links, which can result in slower or incomplete indexing.

 Another issue arises when a URL receives both follow and nofollow internal links, creating conflicting signals for search engines. Google’s crawlers may struggle to determine how much value to assign to the page, potentially leading to inconsistent rankings.

Finally, nofollow internal links represent wasted link equity. Internal linking exists to strategically pass value between pages, but nofollow links break this chain—missing out on a substantial amount of potential ranking power that could be helping it perform better in search results. These issues compound over time, making it crucial to promptly audit and fix unnecessary nofollow attributes to maintain your site’s SEO integrity.

Common Causes Behind Internal Nofollow Links and How They Affect SEO

The SEO Plugins (Unmodified Settings)

Most SEO plugins, notably in WordPress, simply add the rel=”nofollow” attribute to all internal links by default, in settings which may not always be obvious or recognizable, such as those for affiliate links or comment links, or frivolously when building custom menus. This can collateral damage thePageRank flow of important internal links, since the internal links are marked nofollow, another mark-up intended to control spam.

Themes and Templates (Hard Coded Nofollow)

There are many pre-built themes and templates available whose templates contain hardcoded no-follow attributes in their outgoing internal links, especially sitewide navigation and footers and related post widgets. These hardcoded configurations are usually not noticed by web developers or content editors, but directly result in internal nofollow links and block the target pages to either gain or have an effect on other page link equity.

Out-dated SEO (Link Sculpting)

Internal nofollow links had been used in the past as a way to “sculpt” PageRank – that is, to ensure that links to less important pages (such as terms and conditions or log in pages) were not used to pass weight to the rest of the site. But now Google does not follow nofollow as a foolproof commandment anymore; Google sees nofollow as a suggestion. Internal link sculpting has made the use of nofollow important today as a way to diminish crawl flow and topical authority issues when an internal page has both nofollow and dofollow links pointing towards it.

User-Generated Content Settings (Spam Prevention)

Because of the efforts to counteract spam, most forums and comment sections, as well as many CMS platforms apply rel=”nofollow” to all links, even the internal ones. Although this can be beneficial to blocking external spam, it frequently causes outgoing internal links that are given nofollow attributes, even when the internal site which we are linking to can be a valuable site. It is occasionally explained in German as ausgehende links sind intern nofollow, an operation where links within a particular site are treated internally as suspect and thus derail the importance of links to the site.

How to Detect Internal Links Nofollow Attributes Across Your Site

To address the problems in relation to the no follow internal links SEO, it is necessary to find them across your site correctly. Luckily, a number of strong SEO tools are able to track these links, and even when they are buried somewhere in the hierarchy of your site. The most effective tools to use are as follows:

Screaming Frog SEO Spider

Screaming Frog is a desktop-based website crawler that allows you to audit your entire internal link structure. To find internal nofollow links, crawl your site and then navigate to:

Internal -> HTML -> Outlinks -> Contains  rel=nofollow

Internal outlinks that have the rel=nofollow be applied on it will then be displayed and one is able to filter and prioritize them for correction.

Sitebulb

Sitebulb offers an in-depth technical SEO audit of a website and gives visual reports. One of its primary features is identifying cases where a URL receives both follow and nofollow internal links. This flag can make you identify the conflicting signs in your internal linking that may result in crawl inefficiencies or lose the link equity, something detrimental to SEO.

Ahrefs / SEMrush

These enterprise software provide backlink checks and internal linking audits. They can point you towards places which use nofollow and dofollow incoming internal links, helping you uncover misconfigured internal link structures. You should also have the option to review anchor texts and link attributes to make sure there is consistency in your internal linking strategy.

Chrome Extensions (e.g., “Strike Out Nofollow Links”)

Take Chrome browser tools like the “Strike Out Nofollow Links” extension, which allows you to instantly see, at a glance, which links on a page have the nofollow attribute attached. Such extensions present nofollow internal links graphically, so they can be easily and immediately identified on any active page, typically with a red strikethrough or border.

How to Fix Nofollow Internal Links SEO: A Complete Site Audit Checklist

Step 1: Audit Your Site

  • Use Screaming Frog, Sitebulb, or Ahrefs to find all nofollow internal links.
  • Export a list of affected URLs.

Step 2: Determine Why Nofollow Exists

  • Is it accidental? (CMS/plugin defaults)
  • Is it intentional? (UGC, login pages, duplicate content)

Step 3: Remove or Modify Nofollow Tags

A. Manual Fix (HTML)

Change:

CODE1

To:

CODE2

B. WordPress Fix

  • How to fix internal nofollow links WordPress:
    • Edit in Gutenberg/Classic Editor (remove nofollow manually).
    • Use Plugins (SEOPress, Remove Nofollow).
    • Check Theme/Plugin Settings (some add nofollow attributes in outgoing internal links by default).

C. Other CMS Fixes

  • Shopify: Edit link settings in the admin panel.
  • Wix/Squarespace: Modify hyperlink properties.

Step 4: Prioritize High-Value Pages

  • Fix nofollow internal link issues on money pages, pillar content, and high-traffic pages first.
  • Ensure navigation menus, footer links, and contextual links are dofollow.

Step 5: Monitor Impact

  • Track rankings (Ahrefs, SEMrush).
  • Check Google Search Console for crawl improvements

SEO Best Practices for Managing Internal Nofollow Links and Link Equity

An internal structure of links is a very important aspect of SEO strategically which makes search engines get knowledge of how you have organized your site and propagates page authority. These are some of the best practice rules that will help you pack more juice into your internal links:

Use dofollow on the majority of internal links – Internal links ought to share link equity by default. Use nofollow only when you have a reason, such as for low-value pages you don’t want to rank.

Do not attempt to mix follow and nofollow to the same URL – When a page receives both types of links, it creates conflicting signals that may confuse search engines about how to value that content.

Optimize anchor text – To get the best use of anchor text, be descriptive and use keywords that would give a very clear indication of the content of the pages being linked to. Do not overuse the irrelevant phrases such as, “click here,” which offer no context.

Deep linking – Do not link to the home page only. Establish links to key inner pages to guarantee that the link equity is administered all over your whole site structure.

Fix broken links – Broken links inside the web site burn crawl budget and give awful user experiences. Audit and revise or discard them on a regular basis.

When Should You Use Nofollow On Internal Links:

Most of the internal links need to be dofollow, yet some reasons to create nofollow internal links can be justified:

  • The low-priority pages such as the login, the admin, or the thank-you pages that do not need ranking
  • Plagiarism like versions of pages, filtered or sorted pages etc.
  • User-created content, such as untrusted comments that have a likelihood of carrying the links to spams

Implementing these tips, you should compose an efficient using inner linking system that will enhance your search engine optimization.

Why SEO Discovery Is the Best SEO Partner to Fix Internal Nofollow Links WordPress-Wide

Fixing nofollow internal links SEO might seem like a small technical task, however, when handled properly, it can significantly enhance your site’s crawlability, internal link equity, and overall organic performance. As the best digital marketing agency, SEO Discovery believes that the slightest wrong done to your settings may undermine your entire SEO platform. This is the reason why our staff is concerned with examining and resolving the inner connection problems that other tools and audits did not detect.

What Makes SEO Discovery the Right Fit?

  • Professional Knowledge of Technical SEO: Our team excels in technical SEO audits that expose why your internal nofollow links are hurting performance. We analyze your internal linking structure, identify where internal nofollow links are unintentionally blocking link equity, and show you the data-backed methods to correct it, whether in WordPress, custom CMS, or enterprise-level platform.
  • Precision Link Auditing: With the help of the most advanced tools like Screaming Frog, Sitebulb, Ahrefs, and custom crawlers, we identify the locations where outgoing internal links have either nofollow in place incorrectly, point out inconsistencies such as in cases where a URL has multiple follow and nofollow internal links, and provide a clear way forward to fix the issue.
  • WordPress Masters: Have a problem with how to repair internal nofollow links WordPress? We will take care of it. Whether it be the setup of the plugins or theme-level corrections, we fix redundant nofollow tags and retain correct internal linking without affecting site performance or user experience.
  • Quantifiable SEO Profits: Our optimizations are not just box tickers. They create actual performances. With a better PageRank flow and more accessibility of your content to Google, we are able to get your site more quickly indexed and ranked as well as providing it with more topical authority.
  • Actionable Content Strategy Add-Ons: Internal linking works best when paired with compelling, optimized content. Our SEO content writing services and SEO copywriting services help you create link-worthy pages that amplify internal linking benefits. We also offer on-page SEO services that align your headings, metadata, and keyword targeting to build topical authority.
  • Custom SEO Packages: Our customisable SEO packages can be tailored to the size that suits you, whether you’re running a niche blog, a growing ecommerce store, or need SEO for small businesses. We address what counts, focus on those issues which make a difference and follow up to get the best SEO financial advantages.
  • Extended SEO Support Services: We also provide complete content marketing solutions, including keyword research, guest posting services, and internal link strategy mapping, ensuring your internal SEO efforts are supported by a strong, evergreen content foundation.

Ready to Fix Your Internal Linking Issues?

Let  SEO Discovery—the best SEO agency handle the technical details while you focus on growing your business. We’ll audit, fix, and future-proof your internal link structure for lasting results.

Contact Us Today !

FAQs on “How To Fix Nofollow Internal Links SEO”

Internal links that have the attribute rel=”nofollow” are nofollow internal links that indicate to search engines not to pass link equity. Although such could be beneficial in certain circumstances, excessive use of internal nofollow links will affect crawling and fluctuate PageRank to the extent it hinders the performance of a site in terms of search engine optimization.

Generally, the answer is no. Internal links should be set as such that they are followed by default. Applying nofollow to your internal outgoing links may result in the search engines getting lost and the ranking ability not being able to pass across your site. Never use nofollow, when it comes to internal links, to core content or the navigation.

Sitebulb, screaming frog, and Ahrefs are some of the tools that can indicate a page with nofollow and dofollow incoming internal links. Such inconsistency conveys confusing impressions to search engines and must be repaired to give a clean, reliable internal structure of links.

The most frequent ones are improperly functioning SEO plugins, old themes, or security settings that identify internal links nofollow by default. You might also encounter issues where ausgehende links sind intern nofollow (German for “outgoing links are internally nofollowed”) in multilingual setups.

In order to know how to fix internal nofollow links WordPress, the first step is to audit your site with help of SEO tools and then to audit your SEOs (such as Yoast or AIOSEO) and theme files. Take out rel=”nofollow” in all the Internal links that lead to the important pages except in the case of critical needs.

Absolutely. The elimination of the unnecessary nofollow attributes in outgoing internal links enhances crawlability, better-distributed PageRank and enables the search engines to know more about your content hierarchy and results in higher ranking and visibility.

Use nofollow on internal links only when you want to prevent search engines from following a link, such as for staging pages, login portals, or duplicate URLs. But never apply seo nofollow internal links strategy to important product pages, blogs, or core service pages.

Yes! We are experts who deal with fixing the problem of nofollow internal links SEO in SEO Discovery. Regardless of whether you manage just a couple of internal nofollow links WordPress sites or your enterprise platforms with a complicated hierarchy, we provide solutions on a per-site basis to make sure that your link structure can be cleaned up.

Internal links nofollow were previously advised within the old SEO techniques to adjust PageRank. But now, Google has changed the algorithms and this method does not work any more. Here, the best thing to do would be to make use of the natural flow of link equity assisting the rankings of your most vital pages.

Start with conducting internal audit links (e.g. Screaming frog or ahrefs). Find the links having outgoing internal links with nofollow attribute having no reason. Then, disable or revise these links systematically with your CMS or simply in the HTML.